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China's economy is recovering faster than Japan's

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China’s Purchasing Managers’ Index rose for a fourth consecutive month to a seasonally adjusted 53.2 in June from 53.1 in May. Any reading over 50 is considered to be economic expansion. The export-order index increased for the second consecutive month to 51.4 in June from 50.1 in May, expanding for a second month. This is a very important metric for such an export dependent economy. Chinese output and employment indexes also rose.

A separate purchasing managers index published by CLSA Asia-Pacific Markets also showed expansion.

On the numbers, B of A economist Lu Ting said the following, “China’s recovery is gathering further momentum. It has been recovering faster than the market had expected.”

The economic recovery is going much better in China than it is in Japan. I was listening to Bloomberg radio at 7:00 last night while cleaning out my basement and I heard the live release of Japan's tankan index. When I heard the commentators talking about it it sounded like they were saying the "Ton-Ton" index and I thought to myself wow they must be big Star Wars fans in Japan for them to name an index after a creature from the movie ;). Anyhow, the index showed that sentiment among large Japanese manufacturers rose less than economists analysts had forecast June. Many are interpreting this to mean that Japan's economic recovery is happening more slowly than expected.

A number of the guests on Bloomberg, including several gentlemen from High Frequency Economics and RDQ were very pessimistic about the future of Japan. The country's aging population and massive national debt will likely serve as significant headwinds going forward.